Surge in online interest for alternative dry eye therapies following eye drop recalls

A new study reports that the recall of contaminated eye drops in January 2023 significantly increased public interest in the safety of these products and alternative treatments for dry eye disease.

A study analyzed Internet search trends related to DED therapies using Google Trends data from April 24, 2022, to October 29, 2023.

The analysis focused on the following search terms: “dry eye vitamin,” “are eye drops safe,” “stop eye drops,” “lipiflow,” “ilux treatment,” “dry eye mask,” “dry eye warm compress,” “omega-3 for dry eyes,” “dry eye plugs,” “dry eye humidifier,” “itear,” and “IPL dry eye”. During the 40 weeks following the recalls, search interest for 7 out of 10 alternative DED therapies increased significantly. Similarly, keywords related to eye drop safety concerns also saw marked increases.

These results highlight a growing public awareness and concern regarding the safety of eye drops post-recall.

Reference
Martinyan J, Starr CE. Surge in Eye Drop Safety Concerns and Interest in Alternative Dry Eye Disease Therapy Following Eye Drop Recalls: A Cross-Sectional Google Trends Analysis. Eye Contact Lens. 2024;doi: 10.1097/ICL.0000000000001134. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39378274.